


The Bug and Chat Show

by rosebud1000



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrinette, Asexual Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Bisexual Marinette Dupain-Cheng, F/M, General Shenanigans, Getting Together, Ladrien and Marichat get cameos, LadyNoir - Freeform, Not a group chat fic, Post-Relationship, but that's the vibe, let them be teenagers, post-reveal
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:42:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25509940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosebud1000/pseuds/rosebud1000
Summary: Marinette decides that Ladybug needs to appear more human to the public. Her means of reaching this goal? Starting a video series on the Ladyblog with Chat, featuring Questions of the Week, random challenges, and general shenanigans.Nothing could possibly go wrong.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, background Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Comments: 46
Kudos: 268





	1. Introducing: Alya's Exclusive Talk Show with the Heroes

**Author's Note:**

> Why hello, everyone. This idea has been marinating for a while, and I’m finally posting it! While not a group chat fic, it very much has that energy--stupid teens acting weird.
> 
> Enjoy!

“Everyone thinks Ladybug is perfect,” Marinette sighed, skimming yet another article praising her alter-ego.

“I think you mean _purrfect_ ,” Adrien said, looking up from the array of chemistry notes he’d spread across her chaise. In the past month since the reveal, they’d become better friends, and Adrien had somehow convinced Nathalie that study sessions at Marinette’s were necessary. It was nice having him around so much, and she was finding herself much less awkward around him than before.

“No, I don’t.” She frowned, clicking her way to another article under the same website. “I mean, seriously, _Ten Times Ladybug Saved Chat Noir?_ ”

“You do save me a lot.”

“Not more often than you save me, and people don’t do this with Chat Noir. I just don’t get it.”

Adrien set down his stack of flashcards. “I think it’s because Ladybug is only ever a hero. She shows up, fights, and leaves. Her entire being is built around fighting akumas. Even though people know she has a civilian life, that’s not the same as her showing it.”

“Oh, and Chat Noir does something different?”

“Well, yeah. Maybe I am only out for the fights, but I’m constantly joking and making puns. It shows a lot more of a personality.”

“I guess you’re right…” Marinette closed the browser, twirling in her chair.

“It’s something you can change.”

Marinette was about to argue with that, but… he was right. She _could_ change people’s perception of Ladybug. It would be out of her comfort zone, but being a hero had been at the beginning, too. She could find a way to show Ladybug being a person without giving that person a name, and--

“Twenty-eight,” Adrien said, holding up a flashcard.

She glanced over, annoyed that he’d interrupted her scheming. “I don’t know, iron?”

“Nope, nickel.” He turned over the card, Marinette already returning to her planning.

“Forty-four.”

“Don’t you have to leave soon?”

“Wow, **Ru** de.”

The two held eye contact for a long moment, which was pointless, because Ladybug always won staring constants. She tried to think of anything but how green his eyes were, because while she’d been getting over her crush on Adrien at the time of the reveal, she’d also been realizing her crush on Chat. 

Thankfully, Marinette’s thoughts were interrupted by their kwamis phasing through the trapdoor.

“Nathalie’s here,” Plagg reported, waving a wedge of cheese in the direction of the street.

“Okay, so I do have to leave.” Adrien stood, collecting his things. “But keep the flashcards. And study.”

* * *

“You want to do a what?” Adrien asked, staring at Marinette.

“A video series. Like a youtube channel, except through the Ladyblog, so we’re only worried about filming and Alya will do the rest,” she said, stepping off the curb.

Adrien followed her, still confused. They’d taken to walking to the park and eating lunch alone together at least once a week--Marinette always made sure to bring extra pastries for him on these days.

“I need you to do it with me, of course,” she continued. “I made a list.”

Adrien took the paper being shoved under his nose, reading Marinette’s notes. Q&A’s, challenges, something called a Question of the Week…

“This looks like fun,” he said. Honestly, even if he wasn’t sure what was happening, the fact that it would be with Marinette--Ladybug--was enough to convince him to agree. And something very important seemed to be missing from her list.

“Great! I’ll email Alya.”

They arrived at the park and found their normal bench and started unpacking their lunches.

Marinette began happily explaining the commission she’d gotten on Tuesday, pulling out her notebook to show him some sketches. Adrien nodded along, always amazed by anything Ladybug did. It was weird. Even though he’d given up on Ladybug, knowing she was Marinette had set him back a few paces. Weirder yet was that liking Marinette didn’t feel _new_ \--if anything, it felt like something he’d been doing for a long time now.

* * *

There was a notification to the Ladyblog email that Alya had had to ignore for nearly an hour. An hour! She didn’t know what it was, exactly, and she was dying with curiosity. But instead, she and Nino were watching the twins. Such was the life of an older sibling.

“I think you can check that email,” Nino whispered, not taking his eyes off the twins. They’d finally corralled them into playing a board game (that wasn’t Monopoly, that game had long since been banned from the apartment), and despite the occasional screaming, things had calmed down.

“Thanks, babe,” Alya said, pulling out her phone. And immediately squealing.

“What?” Nino asked.

“I can’t-- This is-- oh, WOW!” Alya read through the email, her eyes wide.

“What is it?”

“What is it?”

The twins and Nino crowded around her shoulders.

“Ladybug emailed me.”

“No way,” Nino said.

Alya nodded.

He stared for a moment, then ushered the girls back to the game. “Alright, Ella, it’s your turn. See if you can make it past the mud pit this time.”

She rolled her die and moved her piece forward. “Three aphids, please!”

Alya absentmindedly handed over the tokens, rereading the email. Ladybug and Chat Noir wanted to do a _weekly video series_ with her. This was going to be awesome. Her phone dinged again as a second email popped up, from someone claiming to be Chat Noir.

Like Ladybug, he’d included a reference to Pharoah only the three of them would know (plus Nino, who she’d told). And he had a very interesting plan…

“Alright, can you give the praying mantis five aphids?” Nino asked, helping Etta count as she took her turn.

* * *

“Marinette, you don’t want to be late to your first video,” Tikki said, fluttering around as she did her homework.

“You’re right,” she said, standing up and closing her textbook. After several rounds of back-and-forth emails with Alya, they’d finally agreed on a time: Wednesdays in the early evening, switching their location from roof to roof. That way, Alya could edit videos and post them on Friday evenings.

Even with Tikki’s warning, Marinette was the last to arrive at this week’s location. Chat Noir was already bringing Alya’s filming equipment up to the roof when she landed.

“Why, it’s lovely to see you, my lady,” he said, with an exaggerated bow.

“It’s good to see you too, Chat,” she responded. Somehow, they’d managed to keep their normal banter as superheroes, leaving no one the wiser that something major had happened--or of Marinette’s crush. Including Adrien.

“Hey, can I get a ride up?” Alya called, waving at them from the street.

“Sorry,” Chat said, readying his baton. Right before he leapt off, he slipped a red rose into Marinette’s hand. She stared at him for a moment, then shook her head. Heroes. Honestly.

She wandered over to their set-up: two folding chairs, with an end table placed between them. There was a vase on the table, which Marinette dropped the rose into.

Chat deposited Alya onto the roof, who immediately grabbed her camera. She put the tripod in front of the chairs, still holding the camera.

“Chat, Ladybug, sit down. I’m going to film an intro and then start the first episode. Like I said over email, I like the idea of having a Question of the Week, so I was thinking this first one could get over some of the little things, and then I’ll open it up to fans starting on Saturday.”

“Okay, that sounds good,” Marinette said, taking her seat. Adrien sat as well, grinning at her.

Alya nodded, turned so the heroes wouldn’t be in her frame, then switched on her camera.

“Hello everyone! Today I have the start of a very exciting new series! I’m on a random rooftop in Paris, joined by none other than our very own Ladybug and Chat Noir.” She turned the camera to them, both waving. “For the first installment of a weekly--yes, weekly!--video series with them.”

Alya set her camera on its tripod, adjusted the view, then sat in her own chair, behind the camera. “We’re going to be doing fan-asked Questions of the Week starting next week--I’ll post the discussion for that tomorrow--but I thought we should start off with some good ol’ ice breakers.”

“I hate ice breakers,” Marinette sighed.

“You literally agreed to this two seconds ago.”

“I know.”

“Okay, so first question: Favorite color?”

“Green.”

“Pink.”

Chat and Ladybug locked eyes for a moment, then turned back to Alya in sync.

“Weird. Pets?”

“Nope,” Ladybug said.

Chat thought about it for a moment. “Do fish count? I had a fish once. It died.”

“Oh no,” Alya said.

“It was entirely my fault, don’t feel sorry for me.”

“There was a fish?” Ladybug asked. “How have I not heard this story?”

“I’ll tell you about it later.”

“Yes, you will.”

“Alright, next question.” Alya was starting to feel like she was going to be interrupting them a lot. “Marshmallows: Toasty or burnt?”

“Toasty, I’m not a monster,” Ladybug answered instantly. “Chat, you better not be a monster.”

“Umm, yeah…” he said, scratching the back of his neck.

“What?”

“So, don’t attack anyone…”

 _Why does this sound like it’s going to be a very common phrase,_ Alya thought.

“...But I’ve never roasted marshmallows?”

“Well, since you told me not to attack anyone,” Ladybug grumbled. “I _am_ going to look into remedying that, however.”

“On this show!” Alya added.

“Yes, on this show. Next question?”

Alya glanced at her notecards. “Favorite book or movie?”

“Am I going to be made fun of if I say _Le Petit Prince_?” Chat asked.

“Probably.”

“Then I’ll go with something that’s not a book or movie: _Yuri!!! On Ice._ ”

“How…” Alya sighed. “How am I not surprised?”

“You shouldn’t be,” Ladybug said. “And mine are the second _Harry Potter_ and _Arrietty_.”

The rest of the questions continued in much the same way, with Ladybug and Chat bantering and occasionally saying slightly concerning things, until they reached the final one.

“Here’s one I’ve been wanting to ask: Ladybug, what made you decide to do this series?”

Ladybug huffed, and crossed and uncrossed her legs. “Well… I noticed that people have a perception of Ladybug being a perfect hero. And I realized that it’s because all I ever am is a hero. If I give my alter-ego a sense of humanity, I’m hoping that people will understand that I’m more than the mask, and stop treating me like a flawless can-do-no-wrong type of person.”

“And, of course, she had to drag me along,” Chat added.

“Of course.”

“Okay, thanks. That wraps up today’s video. I hope everyone enjoyed. That discussion will be up soon, I’m really looking forward to filming more of these.”

“Me, too,” Ladybug said.

“Bye!” Chat waved at the camera.

Alya stood up and turned off her camera. “Thanks a lot!”

“No problem, that was fun.” Ladybug stood, folding up her chair.

“It was.” Alya started collecting her things. “Now, let’s get off this roof.”

* * *

Marinette was excited to see the video on the Ladyblog--both how it turned out and how people would react. She clicked the second it was uploaded (nine minutes, she didn’t think they’d talked _that_ long), and was immediately surprised.

Instead of Alya’s face greeting her, it was Chat Noir, standing in front of the Eiffel Tower.

“Hello, Internet,” he said, grinning and swinging his baton. “And welcome to The Bug and Chat Show, where my lady chats with me, and I bug her.”

A short music clip and a title card later, the video began. Marinette looked at its title, and sure enough: _The Bug and Chat Show, Episode 1._

She paused it and pulled up Adrien’s contact.

“What’s up?” he said.

“Adrien Agreste, how dare you?”

There was a pause, then: “I take it you’ve seen the video, then? It’s a brilliant title, isn’t it?”

“You’re lucky I need you to help me save Paris.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -The game the twins are playing is called The Ladybug Game, it was one of my favorites as a kid.
> 
> -The Secret World of Arrietty is super underrated, it’s Studio Ghibli, go watch it.
> 
> -I haven’t written ahead, so updates will be slower than most of my other stories


	2. That Time Ladybug Attacked an Akuma with Knitting Needles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Please don’t ruin my mics,” Alya whispered, watching as Ladybug climbed out of her chair and grabbed Chat.

“Why would you put that in a fish tank?” Marinette asked, speed walking to catch up to Adrien as he turned the corner. This was what he got for agreeing to walking her to school: being late.

“I don’t remember, but it got recalled like a month later for containing lead paint, so…”

“You poisoned your fish.”

“I poisoned the fish.”

“Most cats go for the scoop-and-claw technique.”

Adrien stopped short, taken aback by her quip. And then she sprinted forward, up the school steps. 

“Hey!”

Marinette, her hand on the handle, looked back at him. “You’re gonna be later than me!”

“I am so not!” He sprinted after her and into the school, running through the hallway with only minutes left.

They both slowed down, power walking the last few feet to the classroom so they wouldn’t get in trouble for running. Marinette grinned as she took the first step in, effectively winning. Adrien just laughed, because what else was he expecting? She always won their city-wide races, too (her yoyo was much more efficient than his baton, though, so it was never a fair race).

As he sat down, he could hear Alya whispering to Marinette about this week’s episode of The Bug and Chat Show. Adrien thought the name was genius. Marinette thought it was tolerable. He’d been keeping an eye on the discussion for the Question of the Week. There were a lot of people wanting to know if they were dating—and as much as he wished otherwise, Ladybug would always be quick to deny it.

* * *

Marinette wasn’t sure where it’d been, but the vase with a rose was still sitting on the table when she arrived--late, again--to shoot the show.

“Finally,” Adrien said, slumping into his chair.

“I’m not  _ that _ late,” she said, sitting down.

Alya smiled at their interaction, but continued quietly setting up.

“Oh, and here.” Adrien produced another rose.

Marinette gaped, nearly dropping it when she took it. _ What was he doing, giving her roses like it was no big deal? And red ones, at that. _ Still, she placed it in the vase next to last week’s, which had bruises darkening its petals.

Alya saved her from having to respond by walking over. “I wanted to check with you about the questions before I start recording. There’s been a lot, and I think I picked a good one. But also… a lot of people want to know if you’re dating. I know it’s not something you like having to answer to, but people are just going to keep asking until you do.”

Marinette looked away, trying to act normal. Ladybug always vehemently denied feelings for Chat (even when that hadn’t been the whole truth), and she was expected to do the same now. They were superheroes, they couldn’t date even if they wanted. But now, as much as she tried to push it to the side, they were Marinette and Adrien, and  _ of course _ she wanted to date him.

“You’re right, we should probably get it out of the way,” Adrien said, breaking the silence when Marinette failed to respond.

She nodded, along. Figured. Now that they knew the truth, their situation had been flipped. It was Ladybug pining after her partner, not Chat Noir.

“Okay, can you give me another minute? I have a few things to set up still.” Alya turned around to fiddle with her equipment.

“Are you okay?” Adrien whispered, tapping Marinette’s shoulder.

She looked over at him, hoping her blush had faded. “Yeah, why?”

“You just seem a little weird.”

“I’m not weird, this is totally normal,” she said, forcing a smile.

Adrien nodded, clearly not convinced.

“Mics,” Alya said, handing over their clip-on mics. They clipped them on as she positioned herself behind and the camera. “And… action. So, we’ve gotten a lot of great response to last week’s episode, and we’re starting this one off with two Questions of the Week. First one, Ladybug and Chat Noir, are you two dating?”

“We’re not,” Marinette said, happy that she’d managed to keep her voice even.

“Never say never, Bugaboo.”

Gah. There it was. The perfectly Chat-like response. It could be banter just as easily as it could be flirting, or nothing at all.

“Don’t call me that,” Marinette grumbled to distract herself from her own rushing heart.

“Aw,” Adrien pretended to pout, prompting Alya’s laughter.

“Okay, okay, now that that’s over—and don’t try getting that question back in the list—I’ve got something everyone’s dying to hear about. What’s your favorite story about the other?”

Chat’s face lit up instantly. “The knitting needles.”

Ladybug groaned, putting her face in her hands.

“Knitting needles?” Alya asked.

“Okay, so imagine this: Civilian!Ladybug is having a wonderful time, sitting in her room, peacefully knitting. And she gets an akuma alert. Of course, she transforms and joins the fight—I was already there—still holding the knitting needles. At the time, she was quite fed up with Hawkmoth—”

“Still am,” Ladybug said.

“And, I would assume, was also stressed from something in her civilian life. The next thing I know, she is  _ charging the akuma with the knitting needles _ .”

“But we managed to defeat it, so it really didn’t make a difference.”

“I’d say me having to use my power and leave the fight to recharge made a difference.”

“Ugh, fine. I have a better one, anyway.” Marinette shifted in her chair, deciding on a story—one Adrien didn’t even know she was aware of. “This was about three months ago, I think. We were invited to an event at a hotel. I think we were supposed to go in a back entrance, but Chat didn’t do that.”

“What are you— Oh no, you saw that?”

“Anyway, the front door—the one Chat went in—was a revolving door. And he—” Ladybug broke off into laughter, struggled to contain herself, then continued. “He got his tail stuck in the door.”

Alya burst out laughing, zooming the camera onto the betrayed expression on Chat’s face.

“You saw that and  _ didn’t help me? _ ”

“It took him like, three minutes, to get free. And I think at one point he  _ hissed _ at the door.”

Chat sputtered, his face going red. “Well, I— I know for a fact you posted something on the fanart section of the Ladyblog.”

Ladybug stopped laughing and, ignoring her beet-red cheeks, leveled him. “You can purr.”

“Wait, for real?” Alya asked. “I mean, I’ve heard rumors, but…”

“Yes, for real!” Ladybug reached over, Chat ducking to avoid her hand.

“Nooo,” he said, covering his head.

“Please don’t ruin my mics,” Alya whispered, watching as Ladybug climbed out of her chair and grabbed Chat.

“See?” she said, managing to dig her fingers into his hair and around his cat ears. “You like it.”

“Okay, fine,” Chat mumbled, interrupting a soft purr that Alya couldn’t hear but that the mic definitely could. “I can purr.”

Marinette pulled her hands away, satisfied at his confession—only to be met with how close her antics had made them. She took a step back, then turned and sat in her own chair. “Alya, did you have anything else for us?”

“Yeah, since we have some more time.”

They spent the rest of their hour talking about their experiences being heroes—how did they excuse missing events, what were their favorite things, etc. There were also a lot of questions about Hawkmoth, and the butterfly miraculous, that Marinette hadn’t been expecting. She made a mental note to read the discussions and prepare, and gave answers to the extent she felt was safe. After all, it’s not like there was much Hawkmoth didn’t know about his own miraculous.

She and Adrien both had to split once they got Alya down from the roof. Her parents were waiting for her for dinner, and Nathalie consistently checked in on Adrien in the evenings. 

While she hadn’t thought much of petting him earlier, something about that situation was nagging her. She’d have to talk to Tikki about it later, she decided.

* * *

“How can you remember all this stuff?” Marinette asked, putting her head on her desk.  Adrien had come over to help her with homework, this time late enough to warrant him sneaking out as Chat. After their elements test (which Marinette had managed to pass), Mme Mendeleive had moved them on the covalent bonds, and it was killing her.

Adrien, still transformed, finished drawing the last of the molecule’s electrons. “I don’t know, it just makes sense to me.”

“Well, lucky you.”

Adrien stretched out a hand to pat her head. She looked up, confused, and he retracted it.

Much to his surprise, she grabbed his hand, keeping her eyes on his claws. “Actually, I wanted to say, I’m sorry if I was a little out of line yesterday with petting you on-camera and all.”

Ah. So that explained her antics trying to get them alone together over the course of the school day.

“It’s alright, I guess.”

She gave him a pointed look.

“I’m not stressing about it or anything. I had maybe a little delayed embarrassment when I got home, and Plagg teased me, but… I didn’t mind it in the moment. And that’s a friendly thing, isn’t it?”

Marinette smiled. “I just wanted to make sure.” She turned back to her homework. “But I won’t do it again, at least in front of Alya.”

_ C’mon, you already know I’m yours, milady. _ The response was at the tip of his tongue, but he bit it down. They’d been good about keeping their dynamics the same since the reveal, and that means flirting only when they were both transformed. “I really don’t mind it,” he settled for instead, the words bland in his mouth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why hello, it has been... longer than I expected. (ah, well, this is what I get for purposefully not prewriting). Also, this isn't my normal writing style, and while I'm up for the challenge, it's still taking me some time to tackle. And while this chapter is somewhat short of my goal, I have some good ol' vague plot things planned for the near future. (looking at you, adrinette)


	3. Chat Noir Learns How to Knit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gabriel reacts to the show, Hawkmoth sends a lot of akumas, and Adrien fails to knit. A sleep-deprived Marinette has a lot to say to her crush.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "I'd like to post this before school starts" hahaha  
> Anyway, my fault for sticking myself with three akumas in one chapter.  
> Thanks [Internet_Mom](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Internet_Mom) for helping me edit.  
> Enjoy!

“Those idiots.”

“I _did_ warn you that it was mostly goofing around.”

“How haven’t they spilled their secret by now? And even when they were answering serious questions, there wasn’t a single clue to their identities!” Gabriel glared at the superheroes on his screen for a moment before closing the tab. “‘The butterfly miraculous, like all others, is designed to be used for good,’” he said, mimicking Ladybug’s higher voice.

Nathalie somehow managed to keep a straight face. “Sir, it _is_ just two videos so far. Maybe later they’ll feel more comfortable on camera and accidentally let something slip.”

Gabriel made a noise of agreement, only half-listening to her. Those two wanted to annoy him? Well, he could come up with some akumas to keep them busy.

“You have a meeting at eleven, but nothing until then,” she reminded him. “What should I do in the meantime?”

Gabriel sighed. “Make sure Adrien gets to school on time.”

“Yes, sir.”

* * *

While Adrien hadn’t been able to hang out with anyone from school over the weekend, Marinette had kept him well-updated via text. If they’d thought the first episode of _The Bug and Chat Show_ was a success, episode two had blown it out of the water.

“It’s so cool to finally get to see Ladybug doing something other than fighting,” Rose was saying as Adrien entered the classroom on Monday. “They’re so silly together, too! I bet they’re dating and keeping it a secret.”

“Or maybe we could just believe what they said and leave them be?” Alix suggested, raising an eyebrow.

“They won’t stop talking about that video,” Nino said when Adrien sat down next to him. “I mean, I liked it, and good for Alya, but it’s been three days of this!”

“Yeah. It was pretty funny, though.”

“I dunno. Did you hear all of Chat Noir’s puns?” Marinette asked, leaning over her desk and making a face.

“I happen to think they were re _meow_ kable.” Adrien grinned, waiting for her reaction.

She rolled her eyes and began setting her things on her desk. As she opened her notebook and wrote the date in the corner, most of the phones in the room started beeping.

“Akuma,” Alya said, checking hers.

Marinette—possibly on purpose, for once—fell out of her chair.

“Are you okay?” Adrien asked, jumping up. Then, without waiting for a response: “I better take you down to the nurse.”

Mme Bustier nodded her approval as he pulled Marinette onto her feet. The moment they were out of the classroom, they started running.

“Should I get you some knitting needles, purrhaps?”

“The next person I stab with those is gonna be Hawkmoth,” she grumbled as they exited the school. “Okay, let’s split.”

They’d taken to transforming in different spots so they weren’t coming from the same direction, and their knowledge of each other’s identities remained secret.

As always, fighting with Ladybug was electrifying. The amount of adrenaline coursing through his body was probably to blame, but Marinette’s teasing made the fights seem less serious. He also wasn’t blind to the fact that she looked stunning, flying through the air with the grace she didn’t have as a civilian. It’d been disconcerting, realizing that these thoughts _weren’t_ sexual attraction, and that he had no idea what that felt like and never would.

After the reveal, the fact that Chat had told Ladybug he was ace was the only thing he’d been nervous about. And then Marinette had proceeded to mention it exactly once, in the form of texting him a meme. Not that he was keeping a mental log of all their texts or anything.

* * *

A half an hour before they were recording the next episode of The Bug and Chat Show, Marinette was sitting in her room, scrambling to write the last two paragraphs of an essay. It hadn’t taken her too long (so maybe she’d had Sass’ help with the historical details), but the conclusion? Yeah, she was out of words to write.

“Maybe after you hang out with Chat for a while you’ll be refreshed enough to finish this,” Tikki said, hovering over her keyboard.

“I hope so, it’s due tomorrow.” Deciding Tikki was probably right about taking a break, she spun away from her computer.

Sass was asleep on her chaise, and woke with a couple pokes.

“Oh, d’you need some more help?” he asked, blinking.

“No, but thanks. I was just about to put your miraculous away.”

“Thankss for letting me out for a while, Master.” He floated towards the miracle box, tail flicking. “Bye, Tikki.”

Marinette slipped the bracelet off and back into its spot in the box. She was closing it up and carrying it back to its hiding place when a loud crash echoed through the city.

“Oh, that better not be…” Her phone pinged with the familiar akuma alert. “It’s only been two days.”

“You better transform.”

Marinette finished locking up the box, then climbed onto her balcony. Between the akuma on Monday, and breaking up a bully-induced fight on Tuesday night, Ladybug’s week was shaping up to be busy.

She leapt onto a nearby building, Chat landing next to her soon after.

“Do we know what’s going on?” he asked.

“We’re about to.”

The akuma was a small figure in the sky, flying closer to them and blasting something towards the ground.

“Be ready to dodge,” Marinette warned, grabbing her yoyo.

The akuma descended between buildings, giving them a chance to approach.

“Ladybug and Chat Noir! My name is Tie-Die. Give me your miraculous, or suffer the consequences.” As she spoke, she sent a blast of tie-dye across the street. At first, the rainbows seemed harmless, but it soon became clear that the liquid was acting like glue on everything it touched.

“Akuma’s gotta be in the bottle,” Adrien said, pulling Marinette behind a chimney.

“We need to attack from two angles.”

They put in their earpieces and separated, trying to stay out of Tie-Die’s sight. It wasn’t long before they were beginning to doubt the method—the akuma had no strategy and was shooting randomly. Splitting up, if anything, just made working together harder.

“I think she’s spotted you, my lady,” Chat warned from the other side of the street. “Careful not to get _tied_ up. We really ought to rubber _band_ together for this one.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m coming over to you.” Marinette readied her yoyo as Tie-Die glared at her.

She was able to mostly avoid the spray, but even her supersuit wasn’t immune to the stickiness. Glad it hadn’t touched her feet, ran to the other side of the roof.

“Looking _bi-eautiful_ as always, Bugaboo.” Chat landed beside her, tucking his baton behind his back.

Marinette glanced at her arm, rolling her eyes when she saw the pink-to-blue gradient dripping off of it.

“Let’s get this over with,” she said, careful not to touch anything with her right arm. She called her Lucky Charm, the yoyo throw a little awkward with her left hand.

Even with her disadvantage, the switch to working together helped them defeat Tie-Die quickly after that. Thirty minutes into their recording time with Alya, she cast the cure and they separated to recharge and meet Alya.

* * *

“Hey, Alya,” Ladybug said, dropping to the ground at the meeting spot.

Alya was leaning against a wall, waiting.

“Oh, hi, Ladybug.” Alya straightened up, putting her phone in her pocket. “I wasn’t sure if you still wanted to record today.”

“It’s alright, I just had to recharge. Chat’s right behind me.”

“Are you sure? I might have enough bloopers at this point to get a full reel.”

Adrien chose that moment to drop to the ground next to Alya, grinning. “Save the bloopers for another time.”

“We better get started,” Marinette said, picking up Alya’s tripod.

“Alya, are you alright?” Nino asked. He’d come from around the corner, skidding to a halt when he reached his girlfriend. “I thought I saw you get hit.”

“You got hit?” Marinette almost dropped the tripod.

“It’s no biggie.”

Alya looked between the four of them, whispered something to Nino, then turned back to the heroes. “Would you guys mind if Nino joined me behind the camera today?”

Marinette and Adrien exchanged a look, then nodded.

After taking everything (and everyone) up to the roof, they started setting up. To Marinette’s surprise, Adrien hadn’t been holding their chairs earlier. He’d been holding a large, fold-up loveseat. She looked at it, then back at him.

“I thought it might be nice,” he said.

Once again, previous weeks’ flowers reappeared, and Adrien handed her a fresh one. Alya also handed her a bag, and judging by the weight and the comments she’d seen since last week’s video, she knew what was in it.

“Welcome back to The Bug and Chat Show!” Alya said. “The Question of the Week is _Ladybug, can you teach Chat Noir how to knit?_ so let’s get into it.”

Marinette took the supplies from the bag, thankful to see that the yarn was thick and the both sets of needles were size ten. Perfect for a beginner.

She helped Adrien cast and led him through the first few stitches before starting her own.

“Alright, now that you’ve got that started, there’s a few more questions,” Alya said.

“What?” Adrien sputtered, holding up his tangled yarn. “I need more help.”

Marinette leaned over, examining the knot he’d made. It was a wonder he’d managed to get it so tangled in such a short amount of time.

“You’re going to have to restart.” She began pulling the yarn off his needles and coiling it back around the ball.

Adrien kept his eyes on the string the entire time, his cat ears twitching. Marinette paused, remembering Malediktator. She held up a few centimeters of yarn, swinging it like a pendulum. His eyes tracked the movement.

In the corner of her vision, Alya and Nino watched, trying not to laugh.

She threw the yarn.

Adrien lunged after it. Everyone else burst out laughing, Alya moving the camera to follow him.

Only when he’d tracked the unspooling yarn to the ball did he snap out of it, clutching the yarn to his chest and looking frantically between them.

“Hey! That’s not fair. You— I— I am _not_ a cat.”

“Yes, you are, _minou,_ ” Marinette cooed, patting the seat next to her. “Why don’t we put the yarn away and answer Alya’s other questions?”

* * *

Marinette awoke at two in the morning to crashes and Tikki pulling on her hair. _Another akuma?_ It’d been less than twenty-four hours since the last one.

Still, she got up and managed to fight the akuma, too fatigued to care that Chat Noir was carrying most of the battle. She really hoped Hawkmoth didn’t stick with this new pace. Three attacks in four days was a lot, and Ladybug was showing the effects.

She crashed back onto her bed the moment she could— she was pretty sure Chat carried her home, but she couldn’t remember it.

* * *

Marinette woke up dreading school. No way would she be able to focus. But she rushed out (because of course she’d overslept) and entered the classroom right as the bell rang.

Adrien was her saving grace, waiting for her with a tired smile of his own and a hot cup of coffee.

“I figured you’d be tired,” he said, passing the cup to her.

She stared at him for a moment, her sleep-deprived brain overwhelmed by the simple gesture of care. 

“I love you,” she said, then backtracked, “I mean, ‘cause you’re my friend. We’re friends, and friends love each other, but I’m not _in_ love with you, because that’s totally different. And you’re very claw— I mean, _awe_ some, and I’m tired and you brought me coffee and that’s very sweet. You’re always so kind, and goofy, and you care about everything and you’re really pretty, and…” Marinette put her hand over her face, as though that alone could pull her out of her rambling. “Okay, so maybe I still have a crush on you.”

“ _What_?” Adrien, who’d had his own cup halfway to his mouth, set it back down, sloshing hot coffee onto the lid. “I mean, okay, cool. I, uh, lo— like you too? Like, a lot.”

Marinette sat down, Alya staring at her. Mme Bustier beginning the lesson was the only thing preventing the class from going crazy, she was sure. But in that moment, Marinette couldn’t care. _Adrien liked her._ She had no idea what they were going to do next… but at least there was a _next_ to look forward to.


	4. What Happened on Monday?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette and Adrien have no idea to act around each other. An akuma is more helpful than it seems.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so, school sucks. but this chapter was fun, and i got around to planning a few more! (mentioned homophobia in this chapter)
> 
> Enjoy!

Adrien was not going to do anything about Marinette’s crush on him. Ladybug had made it abundantly clear that being a superhero _always_ came before her own feelings, and he wasn’t sure what she thought about this situation. Chat Noir was used to following Ladybug’s lead, and he knew when to leave decisions up to her.

So right now, he was laying face-first on his bed, trying not to fantasize about the possibility of Marinette asking him out. She’d all but done so this morning—would it be a stammering Marinette, or rambling again? Or would she put together a full, elaborate Ladybug-scheme?

“First it was, ‘oh, Ladybug!’ then it was ‘but Marinette!’ then you found out they were the same person and didn’t speak for a full three hours, and now she likes you and you’re not doing anything?”

Ah, that. Plagg had been monologuing about that for close to an hour. Adrien’s amusement had worn off forty-five minutes ago.

“Humans, I swear. Just ask her out. It’s not that hard.”

“I can’t, Plagg. She knows, I know, it’s her choice.” Adrien sat up. “She _does_ know, doesn’t she? I mean, I’m pretty sure she understood. What if she didn’t, should I—”

“Did you see the look on her face all day?” Plagg asked. “She knows. Alya might still be taking notes for her today.”

“Wait, really? I sit in front of her, so I didn’t notice. She really spaced out that bad?”

“Yes, really. And in case you were wondering, you have three pages of math homework you haven’t even started yet.”

“I do?” Adrien stood and picked up his backpack. “I better do that, then.”

* * *

When Marinette’s alarm went off on Friday, she tried to ignore it. Then she remembered what happened the day before and fell off her bed.

“Are you okay?” Tikki asked.

“Yeah… yesterday was real, right?”

Tikki smiled. “It was. You two are gonna be so cute together!”

“Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves.” Marinette grabbed her phone, eyes widening when she saw the notifications. “Though it seems like Alya has.”

Her friend answered on the first ring.

“ _Finally! I almost died not saying anything at school, but I didn’t want to make you spiral. Seriously, though, that was awesome . You should’ve seen the look on your face. Now, spill. Have you talked at all? What’d you say? What are you going to say? What exactly has been happening all month? You two have gotten awfully chummy._ ”

“Slow down, I just woke up. I, um…” Marinette tried to remember all of Alya’s questions. “We haven’t talked yet, no. And I don’t know what I’m going to say.”

“ _Hmm, well, I can tell you that Adrien is positively lovesick. He won’t say it, but he was totally zoned out all morning._ ”

“Really?” she couldn’t stop her grin from spreading. “He _really_ likes me back, this is incredible.”

Alya laughed. “ _So anyway, when are you gonna ask him out?_ ”

Marinette froze. Ask him out? They were superheroes! They couldn’t date… could they?

“ _Or not,_ ” Alya added. “ _You, um, think about that a while, then. I’ll see you at school!_ ”

The call ended, and Marinette was left staring at her phone. How could she overlook such an important detail? Hawkmoth would exploit anything about them he could. Surely, dating would be too risky.

* * *

By some force unknown to Adrien, Marinette got to school before him. When he entered the classroom, he was faced with her, sitting at her desk. Which doesn’t sound so bad, expect she was drawing in her notebook, her brow furrowed in a way only he could recognize as Ladybug. And when she saw him, she sent him a nervous smile, then went right back to her paper.

He was not going to make a move.

He sat down in front of her and struck up a conversation with Nino. Something about a pop quiz in history. He wasn’t paying much attention.

“So?” Nino asked, tilting his head in Marinette’s direction. “Are you gonna…?”

Adrien shrugged. “It’s up to her.”

“She doesn’t exactly have the best history of confessing to you, y’know.”

“That’s okay.” Adrien pulled his notebook out of his bag. “I’m willing to wait.”

* * *

By the end of the school day, Marinette was wishing that the confession hadn’t happened. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Knowing that Adrien liked her was thrilling, but everything had been so awkward. Chat Noir followed Ladybug’s lead during akumas, and he seemed to be extending that to this.

“He’s trying to be respectful. Ladybug’s set some pretty strong boundaries, and he doesn’t want to push them,” Tikki said, peeking out of Marinette’s purse as she walked home from school.

“I know,” Marinette said, “but it’s so much pressure. I mean, if he just out and kisses me, it’s not like I could reject him then.”

Oh, and what if he did kiss her? Maybe he was returning to Chat’s former grand gestures, setting something up right now…

“You’re thinking about kissing him now, aren’t you?”

“I am, Tikki.” Marinette put her hands over her face. “This is a disaster.”

Her phone rang with an akuma alert.

“It looks like there’s a bigger disaster coming our way. You better suit up.”

Marinette ducked into the nearest alley and transformed. The alert had said the akuma wasn’t far from where she was, but she couldn’t see—or even hear—any evidence of it.

People spread a path as Ladybug walked down the street, checking her yoyo for any information on the attack. There was still nothing other than _little threat_ in the description. A metal pole landed in front of her.

“Need a lift?” Chat asked, grinning down from the roof above.

“There you are.” Marinette threw her yoyo, letting it catch on the roof and pull her up. “Do you know what’s going on?”

Adrien waited for her to hook her yoyo around her waist. “I’m not entirely sure, but I think it’s somewhere over there.”

Marinette followed his point to the Trocadero, where a group of people were gathered. There wasn’t an obvious akuma in the group, though. A news van was parked on the side, a small camera crew hurrying around. She opened her yoyo.

“ _Don’t be bemused, it’s just the news. After reports of a possible akuma at the Trocadero, we’ve come to investigate,_ ” Nadja explained. Adrien leaned over Marinette’s shoulder to watch. “ _L_ _uckily, it doesn’t seem to be actively hurting anyone._ ”

“That’s good,” Marinette said. “But I’d still like to get this over with.”

“ _Oh, my!_ ” Nadja ducked, but still got hit by a mostly invisible blast— a slight distortion was the only thing signaling its presence. “ _Well, I feel alright. How about you, Jerry?_ ”

The camera turned to show a man holding a mic, stumbling back, his nose now bright red.

“ _That’s certainly a surprise. I wonder why it’s not affecting me._ ”

“ _It’s people like you who cause problems,_ ” a voice cut in. The camera panned over to a young woman, arms crossed.

Marinette and Adrien both balked at the bright, clashing outfit she wore.

“I’m guessing she’s the akuma,” he said.

“ _Do you have kids?_ ”

Jerry stayed frozen still.

“ _Well, let’s say you do, and one of em’s gay. Do you go to their wedding? What kind of parent— well, homophobic ones, I guess._ ” She turned to Nadja. “ _It’s good to see you’re not an idiot, unlike some people._ ”

She left, returning to the crowd.

“ _So, it looks like this akuma is marking homophobes with red noses… I’ll be awaiting any changes to that conclusion. For the time, she appears to be staying in the area, and causing no direct harm, but we encourage the public to stay back, as with all akumas._

“ _Ladybug and Chat Noir have been spotted, several blocks away. I’m Nadja Chamack, and this is TVi Live News.”_

Marinette shut her yoyo. “Wow. That’s… a weirdly good akuma.”

Chat nodded.

“I mean, no physical damage. All she’s doing is exposing homophobes. Not even, I dunno, outing people or something seriously awful. This could even help someone who’s trying to decide who’s safe to come out to.” She sat down. “...I don’t have anything to do for another hour, what about you?”

“I just got done with my last photo shoot.”

“Wanna hang out for a bit?”

* * *

Marinette felt a lot better about going to school on Tuesday. She and Adrien had spent half an hour sitting on that roof together before deciding the akuma was causing more chaos than it was worth and defeating it in ten minutes.

It turned out that the akuma, Lucille, had found out that her parents weren’t planning on attending her sister’s wedding. Ladybug had stuck around and made sure they talked it out— Lucille didn’t like being left in the dark after Clarisse had spent most of their childhood protecting her from their parents’ prejudices.

It was by far the most wholesome akuma she’d ever fought.

“I take it you’re feeling good today?” Tikki asked as Marinette brushed her hair.

“Of course! I know Adrien and I didn’t talk about the whole crush thing yesterday, but I think we’re done being awkward about it.”

“Why haven’t you asked him out, though?”

“We’re superheroes, aren’t we? It might not be a good idea. We can’t afford to be selfish in a fight.”

“Would dating him change how you feel?”

“Well—” Marinette _was_ already willing to die for him. She’d been in love with Adrien, and her feelings for AdriChat were a total mess leaning to the side of _hopelessly in love_.

“Just think about it.”

* * *

“Hello everyone, and welcome back to The Bug and Chat Show!” Alya said.

Ladybug and Chat Noir waved at the camera.

“So today, I have a Question of the Week and one more. I’m going to start with the less important one.”

“Are you ranking the questions?” Chat asked. “They might not like that.”

Alya sighed. Ladybug looked at Chat.

“Anyway, the first question is—and I’m terribly sorry that this wasn’t the first question I asked on this show—is it a _pain au chocolat_ or a _chocolatine_?”

“ _Pain au chocolat,_ ” they both answered.

“We live in Paris, Alya, what are you expecting from us, the wrong answer?” Despite the clear address to Alya, Ladybug did not take her eyes off Chat.

“There were a lot of replies to that comment.” Alya shifted in her chair. “But onto the Question of the Week: What happened on Monday?”

“Oh, yeah, that,” Chat said.

“First maybe we should explain what was seen for anyone who doesn’t know?” Ladybug suggested.

“There was an akuma, they hung out watching it for a while before even trying to defeat it,” Alya said. “There’s been a lot of theories as to why.”

“So, basically, the akuma wasn’t hurting anyone,” Ladybug said, somehow still staring at Chat. Okay, something had definitely happened there. “And exposing homophobes, which frankly, yay.”

“Yay?”

“Yes, yay. Crap like that’s not cool.”

“I agree,” Chat said. “And I’m the coolest cat in town, so…”

“You’re a dork, Chat.”

“You wound me, m’lady.”

“Um,” Ladybug said, her voice rising several pitches. She cleared her throat. “Anyway, hate is bad.”

Internally, Alya’s Ladynoir sirens were wailing. Externally, she took a deep breath. “Yes. Hate is bad. And, uh, one thing I saw a lot of people wondering about is if you have more… personal reasons for letting the akuma do its thing?”

“Personal rea— Oh.” Ladybug bit her lip. “Yeah, I’m bi.”

Chat fidgeted for a moment, then made his decision. “And I’m ace. Asexual… I don’t get sexually attracted to people.”

Alya was not surprised about Ladybug’s answer. Chat’s, however, wasn’t expected. But then again, asexuality wasn’t the most obvious, and it seemed like he did still find people romantically attractive—if the Ladybug confessions and what Alya remembered from questioning her sexuality two years ago were to be believed.

They continued the conversation: why they’d ended up leaving the akuma be for so long, why they intervened when they did… and Ladybug rarely took her eyes off Chat. Alya knew what a crush-and-something-happened looked like, and this was it.

After Alya checked to make sure they were both okay with her posting the part talking about the sexualities, Chat left right away. Ladybug stayed and helped clean up.

The two stood on the street, Alya with an armful of filming equipment. Ladybug readied her yoyo.

“Hey, Ladybug?”

“Yeah?” She stopped mid-step and turned to face Alya.

“You and Chat… Look, I don’t really know what’s going on there. But he’s probably worth it.”

She blushed. “Oh. Um, thanks.”

Alya picked up her bag, careful not to crush anything. It wasn’t that she shipped Ladynoir. But these past few weeks had shown her that Ladybug and Chat Noir weren’t just heroes. They were humans, too, and they deserved to be happy.

* * *

“You’re all right, aren’t you?” Marinette asked, late at night, staring at the ceiling above her bed. “You and Alya? I really don’t have any reason to be so afraid, especially now that I know he likes me back.”

She rolled over, pulling the blankets around herself. A patch of moonlight lit the floor of her room.

“I’m going to do it, Tikki. I’m going to ask him out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there's literally an entire website dedicated to the pain au chocolat/chocolatine debate.
> 
> Next chapter: Ladybug breaks a yoyo, Adrien cries (not necessarily in that order)


	5. Ladybug Shows us Yoyo Tricks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She shrugged. “Plausible deniability.”

Marinette came to school on Thursday unsure of how she wanted to ask Adrien out. She’d made a million plans before and none of them had ever worked. Unfortunately, Tikki’s advice of “follow your heart” wasn’t the best when her heart was busy beating out of her chest.

“Marinette!”

She slammed her locker shut. “Alya, don’t do that!”

“Sorry.” Alya held up her bag to block Marinette’s half-hearted shove. “Hey, you look nervous… wait. Are you going to…?”

She shrugged, trying to act casual. “I think so.”

“You _think_ so?”

“Please don’t make a big deal?”

Alya nodded, pulling a textbook out of her locker. “I won’t… until he says yes, anyway.”

“That’s the best I’m gonna get from you, isn’t it?” Marinette followed as Alya turned away from the lockers.

“I don’t know, it’s not a big deal.”

* * *

Maybe Nino was right. Marinette was easily flustered, and waiting for an answer from her might take weeks. And Adrien didn’t want to wait weeks. He could try to ask about their relationship subtly, gauge her reaction, and then decide whether to ask her out.

He’d learned to read Ladybug’s emotions pretty quickly, and could feel Marinette’s nervousness from the moment she entered the classroom. Before he had a chance to talk to her, Mme Bustier was starting the lesson.

He sat through the lesson, barely taking notes, and tried to figure out what he was going to say to Marinette. He wanted to hint at the possibility of a relationship without actually asking her out.

When they were finally dismissed for lunch, Adrien let others pass him so that he could talk to Marinette alone. If only he’d paid attention to where she’d gone…

“Adrien,” she said, tapping his arm.

“Oh, hey. I was just—”

“Can we talk?”

“Yeah, sure.”

She led him out of the school with the determination she usually reserved for Ladybug.

“So,” he asked, when they were standing outside the school, “how are you?”

“Good, good. Thursday. Best day of the week, you know?”

Adrien did not know. “Yeah, of course.”

Marinette nodded. “Will you go out with me?”

“Yes,” he answered, before he had time to fully process the question. (But Marinette had asked him out and that was incredible enough.)

“Okay. Wow, that was… wow. Um, when?”

“This weekend, maybe? I’ll text you later, I don’t have my schedule memorized.”

“That sounds good.”

They stared at each other, blushing, before Alya ran up and dragged them off to eat lunch somewhere. But Adrien had a date with Marinette. With Ladybug. Though they sat in a circle on the grass and Adrien knew he was talking with Nino, he wasn’t paying any attention. And from the glances Marinette kept giving him, he didn’t think she was either.

* * *

“Alya!” Marinette pulled her into the apartment. “I need your help.”

“Yeah, yeah, I got your texts.” Alya pulled her hands away and followed Marinette up to her room. “Surely you have _some_ cute clothes?”

“Oh, sure, but an entire outfit?” Marinette gestured to the piles of clothes on her floor.

“Not when you’ve got everything—” Alya caught sight of something hanging off the chaise. “What’s that?”

She picked it up, eyes wide at the neon green paw print on the front of the black sweatshirt. “You got this? Even I couldn’t; it’s limited edition.”

Marinette shrugged.

“It’s huge, too. Your dad could probably wear it.”

“It was the smallest size left when I got there.” Marinette picked up a red blouse. “Now seriously, outfit for my date with Adrien?”

* * *

“He’s my boyfriend, he’s my boyfriend, he’s my boyfriend,” Marinette sang, flopping dramatically onto her chaise.

“You two were cute!” Tikki said. “I told you a date with Chat Noir wouldn’t be so bad.”

“Tease me all you want, I have a boyfriend.”

Marinette’s mind was already replaying the date: going to a fancy restaurant just to order a dessert to share, Adrien laughing with meringue on his nose, a walk along the Seine where he’d let her wear his mittens because spring wasn’t quite here yet. Three hand kisses that made her heart beat faster, and one cheek kiss.

And of course, him asking to be her boyfriend.

She squealed and hugged the Chat Noir sweatshirt that had found its way into her arms.

* * *

“Hey kid, you good?” Plagg asked, poking Adrien.

“She’s perfect…” he mumbled and collapsed on his bed. His dress shirt might get wrinkled, but that was the last thing on his mind.

* * *

Some hours after the date, Marinette resigned herself to being too excited to fall asleep. She sighed and grabbed her phone. She’d been meaning to check the comments on the last Ladyblog video anyway.

At first, she scrolled through, pleasantly surprised by the positivity around their coming out. Then again, she suspected most of the viewers were teenagers. But one comment caught her eye, and she couldn’t help but respond.

**illogical.beaver:** _  
_ _honestly ppl, they don’t owe u an explnation of their sexualities cos theyre in the public eye…_

_36 previous replies_

**buggiestlady:** _  
_ **_@illogical.beaver_ ** _we know! I can’t speak for Chat, but I like being able to add to representation, since there’s a lot of bi erasure._

She screenshotted it and sent it to Adrien, though he was likely asleep, in case he wanted to reply in the morning. Not even five minutes later, he did.

**chattails:** **_  
_** **_@illogical.beaver_ ** _Asexuality is pretty often missed, so there’s a chance someone first heard the term from me!_

**↪ yesthespikesarereal:** **_  
_** **_@chattails_ ** _(i like ur username) i did!!! u said “no sexual attraction” and i was like O.o_

**↪ chattails:** **_  
_** **_@yesthespikesarereal_ ** _(aw thanks) I’m literally crying? That’s the best non-compliment I’ve ever received._

MDC: you’re crying?

AA: Yes

MDC: you need to go to sleep

AA: So do you

MDC: ig

AA: We are both going to sleep now

MDC: okay, fine

AA: Goodnight princess🤍

MDC: goodnight chaton

Marinette fell asleep with her phone on her chest. The only thing better than finding out Adrien was Chat Noir was him being her boyfriend.

* * *

“Hello everyone, and welcome to episode five of _The Bug and Chat Show_!” Alya zoomed in the camera to Ladybug’s eyeroll, then back out to their setup.

Chat Noir grinned and waved. “By the way, we wanted to say thanks to the overall reaction to the last episode. I know it was better than I was expecting, and it’s always so great to see that positivity, especially for people who are questioning.”

“Right, of course,” Alya said, ignoring Ladybug as she moved closer to Chat so their sides were touching. “And now for the Question of the Week: _Ladybug, can you show us yoyo tricks?_ ”

“That, I can,” she said and reached for her yoyo.

“There’s a twist, though.” Alya held up the plastic yoyo she’d bought the day before. “Not using your magic yoyo.”

“That’s not fair. I’m using this.”

“You have to answer the question.” Alya threw the yoyo at her.

Ladybug caught it, still shaking her head.

“C’mon, bugaboo. It’ll be fun,” Chat added.

“For you, maybe.” But Chat had convinced her, and she left her own yoyo around her waist.

The next twenty minutes consisted of Ladybug trying to do the tricks Alya had instructions to. She’d never thought about the magical control she had over her own yoyo until now. An unbreakable string wasn’t nearly as helpful as being able to determine how long it would be.

“Are you okay?” Alya asked.

Ladybug stepped out of the yoyo string, muttering. “Yeah, alright. What’s next?”

“Get it bouncing again.”

She flicked her wrist and the yoyo flew over her hand. The string snapped, sending the yoyo flying over the street.

“…So I’m used to an indestructible yoyo.”

“You don’t say.” Alya had unfortunately forgone a back-up yoyo.

“I’ll get it!” Chat jumped up, eager to have something to do.

Ladybug watched him leap off the roof, then turned to Alya. “Sorry about your yoyo.”

“No worries. Oh, did anything… cause you’re not really acting weird like last week, so I was just wondering…”

Ladybug’s eyes went wide. “We, um, we figured it out.”

Chat Noir landed on the roof in front of her and reached out to kiss her hand. “I could not find the yoyo, so it looks like you’re saved from further embarrassment.”

“My hero,” Ladybug said.

Chat blushed.

“Okay, I guess we’re done filming. I have enough footage for a video.” Alya switched off her camera.

As they began packing up, she looked at Ladybug.

“ _Figured it out_? Really?”

She shrugged. “Plausible deniability.”

* * *

Later that evening, Alya set up to film in her bedroom. She had an idea for next week’s video, and it wasn’t a Question of the Week.

“Hey everyone, this is a special video to set up next week’s _Bug and Chat Show._ I want to do Truth or Dare with our heroes. I have a few ideas, but I need more. So comment down below, and make sure to specify if it’s a truth or dare, or directed at a specific hero.

“I’ll be moderating as always; those rules are on the homepage. I can’t wait to see what you all come up with!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it has been a MONTH y'all. I got a puppy, she's cute and time consuming, and also, screw IB


	6. Truth or Dare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette smiled. "You're cute when you're nervous."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi! It's been a while, but I'm back. Hopefully, the next chapter won't take me as long. For now though... did anyone want some lovesquare fluff?
> 
> *Notes in reference to cannon* This fic starts about a year after Miracle Queen, no NY special. Lila has already been dealt with. Coming soon to a chapter near you: Adrigami and Lukanette explanation.

“Plausible deniability,” Alya muttered, trying not to drop a soapy dish. “Ladybug and her damn plausible deniability.”

“I know, babe.” Nino grabbed a dish from her and started drying. The worst part about having him over to make cookies was cleaning up.

“They’re so obviously dating! We could just admit it and move on but noooo, Ladybug wants a secret boyfriend. They’re awful at the whole ‘secret’ thing, I’m surprised I haven’t figured out their identities yet based on this.”

“Are you getting good answers for the truth or dare video?”

“Yeah.” Alya finished scraping the cookie batter off a whisk. “I need to sit down tonight and decide which ones I’m using.”

“I’ll help.”

It took them two hours and a tray of cookies, but they managed to sort through the comments. Not everyone had tagged their prompts properly, and though Alya was tempted to ignore those, some were really good.

“I think a third of these are asking if they’re dating,” Nino said.

“I’ve been told that I know nothing.”

* * *

“A test. An actual test.” Marinette collapsed over her chaise and dropped her pencil.

“Yes, those tend to happen,” Adrien said.

Marinette pushed herself back up. “Chemistry sucks.”

“And now I’m here, teaching you how to balance equations. Pick up your pencil.”

She grumbled all the way to the floor to join him by the open textbook. “You know, Jagged Stone wanted me to design a poster for his new single. I _could_ be working on that. I have to go buy some new markers, though, my purple ran out last week.”

“My lady, please. I’m trying to help you.”

“Okay, okay.” She sat cross-legged next to him. “Teach me chemistry.”

* * *

“Ready for truth or dare?” Alya grinned as she unfolded her tripod.

“Why did I agree to this.”

“I’m sure it won’t be bad, bugaboo.”

Alya checked her focus. “Yeah, I filtered the suggestions.”

“Wonderful.” Ladybug sat in her spot.

Chat nudged her with his elbow. “You know, for the person who wanted to start this show, you do seem to hate it a lot.”

“I don’t. I just have a reputation to uphold.”

“The entire point was to change your reputation.”

“And… action! Today on _The Bug and Chat Show,_ we’re playing truth or dare with Paris’ favorite superheroes. These prompts have been sent in by my followers, and I added a few of my own. So, who’s going first?”

Chat glanced around, then raised his hand. “I will. Show Ladybug that there’s nothing to be scared of.”

“Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

Ladybug rolled her eyes.

Alya reached into the bag she’d brought. “Hold this for the rest of the show.”

Chat caught what she threw at him and frowned. “A cucumber? What do you want me to do, eat it?”

“Really?” Ladybug asked, shaking her head at Alya. “No, Chat. There’s a thing that cats are afraid of cucumbers.”

“Oh.” He turned the vegetable over in his hand, unimpressed. “Well, nothing to be afraid of. Your turn, bugaboo.”

“I reserve the right to refuse any question that might reveal my identity.”

“Yeah, I know.” Alya scrolled through her notes to find the comments directed at Ladybug. “So, truth, then?”

“Yes.”

“Who’s your favorite temporary hero?”

“What? No, I’m not— you can’t—”

“Does it jeopardize your identity?”

“Well, no, but… that’s just mean, to pick favorites.”

“That’s the point. So choose.”

“I’m gonna add another rule,” Chat said. “You can’t pick Aspick.”

“Aspick?” Alya asked. “Who’s that?”

“Unimportant,” Ladybug said.

“Seriously, answer the question.”

“Um, not Ryuko.”

“Ooh, Ladybug.”

She facepalmed. “Cut that out, please. But, if I have to choose, Carapace. He’s chill, and does well in a fight.”

And then it was Chat’s turn again. Alya seemed to have stock-piled half a million prompts, and it was only when the sun had started setting that she showed signs of slowing down.

“Let’s end with Ladybug to keep it even. Truth or dare?”

Marinette looked from her to Adrien, who was sitting in a box, courtesy of his last dare. “I’ll go with truth.”

“Okay. Was Dark Cupid your first kiss?”

“Dark Cupid didn’t count,” she protested, face burning. “He doesn’t remember it, it was like a stage kiss, those don’t count, ask the theater kids.”

“If it did count, would it have been your first?”

“…No.”

Chat poked his head out of the box. “No?”

“Like you’re entitled to knowing about my romantic life.”

“Never said I was. Can I get out of the box now?”

Alya cut her camera. “Yeah, okay. That’ll take me forever to edit, but I have to go home to dinner.”

* * *

Marinette and Adrien had a routine, and all three of them and the equipment was off the roof in less than five minutes.

Marinette didn’t detransform as soon as Alya left, instead leaning against the alley wall. “She better remember to edit out everything I told her to.”

“Yeah.” Adrien scratched the back of his neck. “So, um, who _was_ your first kiss?”

“Doesn’t matter. No one you know. I haven’t talked to her in years.”

“Years?”

“It was before I became Ladybug. Typical awkward first kiss, I guess. What about you? Is Kagami a good kisser?”

“Um, we never really…”

“Oh. So you’ve never…”

“Never.” It had never occurred to Adrien to be embarrassed of that fact; he was still a teenager and he’d been kept out of school for years. He wasn’t embarrassed of it now, but Marinette, _his girlfriend,_ had way more experience than him. Well. At least one of them knew what they were doing.

“Wait,” she said, “do you even want to? I know you’re ace, but I figured Oblivio meant you wanted—”

“Marinette. Of course I want to kiss you.”

She stepped closer to him and grabbed his hand. “I’m your girlfriend, you know.”

“Yeah, I—”

She smiled. “You’re cute when you’re nervous.”

And just like that, she was kissing him. All he could think about was their intertwined hands, her other on his shoulder, the sweet smell of her shampoo and the fading taste of strawberry lipgloss.

* * *

“I kissed Adrien Agreste!” Marinette exclaimed as she dropped her transformation.

“Finally!” Tikki said. “Was it any good?”

“It was _Adrien_ , Tikki.” She reached for her phone, to check anything she’d missed while filming. There was an email from Jagged Stone about the poster she was making.

_Hi Marinette,_ _  
_ _I know this might be short notice, but could we add a second poster and the single cover to our commission? We still need them in two weeks. For the second poster, we’d like a lighter color palette and less crowded composition than the first, for variety. The cover can be whatever you think is best, but try and include elements of the posters in it._   
_Thanks,_ _  
Jagged_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! As always, drop a comment, I eat them for breakfast :)

**Author's Note:**

> I’d like this story to be more interactive than my norm-- if you have an idea for question, or something else you want to see, leave it in the comments!
> 
> -rosebud


End file.
